San Francisco holds 'sister demonstration' for Gaza

Following the massive March on Washington for Gaza on Saturday, San Francisco held a “sister demonstration” on the west coast on Sunday to call for a ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza.

With this weekend marking the hundred-day milestone of the war, demonstrations around the world were held as Gaza’s death toll approaches 24,000.

The crowd, which the Palestinian Youth Movement estimated at around 25,000, gathered in front of City Hall and then headed downtown, blocking afternoon traffic as they marched down the city’s main thoroughfare of Market Street.

As the march began, a truck parked nearby with Palestinian flags played music while another truck carrying demonstrators with megaphones led the march.

The crowd was diverse, with a strong showing of Arabs from different parts of the San Francisco Bay Area and allies from different backgrounds. 

In addition to the frequently-seen signs reading “Ceasefire Now”, “Let Gaza Live”, and “Free Gaza”, many held signs (sometimes in different languages) to show their own community’s support, such as Latinos for the Liberation of Palestine or the Black Community Stands with Palestine. Healthcare workers and journalists also noted their affiliations, holding signs reading: Stop killing our colleagues.

Elliot Morado, a resident of the East Bay, told The New Arab that he was moved to attend the march after following months of news reports on Israel’s bombing of Gaza. He said he came out “to stand on the side of what’s right.”

As the march passed downtown, a group of street musicians gave a rap performance with the repeated line, “Free Palestine”.

This demonstration comes days after the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed a resolution calling for a ceasefire, making it the largest US city to make such a move.